The second annual Mark Scheifele watch will begin at about 2:21 p.m. on Saturday.

That’s when the Winnipeg Jets’ fourth line should hit the MTS Centre ice against the Ottawa Senators, with the 2011 seventh overall draft pick skating on a line with Jim Slater and Chris Thorburn.

Last year the Jets let him play seven games before sending him back to the OHL’s Barrie Colts. This year, due to the compressed schedule, he gets five games before the first year of his NHL contract would activate.

Scheifele wasn’t sure where he stood at the end of Friday’s final training camp practice, but the press release the Jets issued an hour later, announcing the demotions of forwards Spencer Machacek and Max Macenauer, left him with two fewer players to worry about, although also on Friday the team claimed James Wright off waivers.

“I wanted to just come out and work my hardest, show that I can play D zone, know that I can play offensive zone and do whatever it took,” Scheifele said.

He skated on a line with Thorburn and Slater for most of the week, so it appears he’ll have plenty of time to prove his defensive prowess during his five-game tryout for the big club.

“It’s a key role, and I definitely have to work on my defensive zone play,” he said. “I have to be very conscious of what I do defensively. In junior sometimes you get caught cheating and stuff like that, but this really helps you mature as a player and a person.”

The debate over Scheifele is whether a natural scorer at the junior level should play on the fourth line in the NHL before moving up to a top-six role. Will it stunt his development? Or should he go back to junior, hone his offensive skills and build up some bulk to get ready to run with the big boys?

Naturally, Scheifele is ready to do anything to remain in Winnipeg, which includes playing on the checking line.

“Playing with those guys, it’s great,” he said. “They’re great defensively. They’re smart offensively. They know what to do. They know how to get pucks to the net. We’ve talked a lot this week, and we’ve just been trying to gel as a line. If that comes (Saturday), then it would be good.”

There’s also the fact that it’s been 15 months since Scheifele last played in the NHL. The poor kid misses it.

“Oh, so much,” he said. “It’s pretty crazy. When you go from playing in the NHL to junior, it’s a huge difference and it’s something I want to be a part of for a long time.”

Jets' Scheifele gets second shot at sticking with big club

The second annual Mark Scheifele watch will begin at about 2:21 p.m. on Saturday.

That’s when the Winnipeg Jets’ fourth line should hit the MTS Centre ice against the Ottawa Senators, with the 2011 seventh overall draft pick skating on a line with Jim Slater and Chris Thorburn.

Last year the Jets let him play seven games before sending him back to the OHL’s Barrie Colts. This year, due to the compressed schedule, he gets five games before the first year of his NHL contract would activate.

Scheifele wasn’t sure where he stood at the end of Friday’s final training camp practice, but the press release the Jets issued an hour later, announcing the demotions of forwards Spencer Machacek and Max Macenauer, left him with two fewer players to worry about, although also on Friday the team claimed James Wright off waivers.